What Is Universalism?
As a follower of Jesus and his teachings I think it’s important for us to understand what universalism is because I’ve known people who claimed to be followers of Jesus while at the same time holding universalist views. Generally speaking a universalist believes that all roads lead to God. Those roads could be through Buddhism, Islam, Hinduism, or any number of religions besides Christianity.
I used to follow a guy named Rob Bell who was a pastor, then author, and finally a universalist. Rob Bell started a church in Grand Rapids, Michigan, called Mars Hill in 1999. In just a couple of years his church exploded with growth and was running over ten thousand people. Rob was a dynamic teacher with incredible biblical insight. While pastoring Mars Hill Rob began to slowly drift toward universalism. I read his first two books. They were definitely out-of-the-box thinking but still within a Christian orthodox framework.
However everything changed when Rob wrote a book called, Love Wins. I read the book and by the time I was finished I was beyond disappointed. The premise of the book was that everyone goes to heaven. Personally I wish that were true but that is not what Jesus said. In fact Jesus talked more about hell than anyone else in the New Testament.
I saw Rob on a talk show after the book came out. The host of the show said, “I’m not a religious person but I have a question. If everyone goes to heaven then why should I become a Christian? Rob looked like a deer caught in the headlights. He said something like, “Well I just think your life will be better if you become a Christian.” I thought to myself, “Rob, that’s the best you can do? How can you know the Bible better than the majority of people in our country and believe something so completely unbiblical?” Look, I know we all want to be liked and live at peace with others as much as possible but there comes a time in the life of a Christian when we must stand on the truth proclaimed by Jesus himself.
In John 14:6 (NIV) Jesus said , “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” I realize this is an inconvenient truth for those who can’t stand the idea of being disagreeable but it’s part of picking up our cross and following Jesus. If we believe everyone goes to heaven then we basically have no incentive to share the gospel with people. Our spiel with our Muslim or Hindu friend or co-worker might sound like this: “You're into Buddhism? Cool, bro. I’m a Christian but it doesn’t matter. I mean, we're all going to the same place, so what’s the difference?”Do you see what I mean?
In Luke 14:27-29 (NIV) Jesus says, “And whoever does not carry their cross and follow me cannot be my disciple. Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. Won’t you first sit down and estimate the cost to see if you have enough money to complete it? For if you lay the foundation and are not able to finish it, everyone who sees it will ridicule you, saying, ‘This person began to build and wasn’t able to finish.’”
The point is there is a cost to being a Christian. All too often people embrace Christianity without realizing the cost. In the coming days there will be greater pressure for Christians to go with the flow and to acknowledge that all roads lead to heaven. If you believe that then you are a universalist. And though that particular worldview might make you feel good, I think it’s important for you to understand that universalism is not compatible with Christianity.
If you have questions about what I have written please feel free to contact me. I would love to hear from you.
Stay close to Jesus,
Steve